Talk:Drums of Autumn/@comment-25458186-20140924183345/@comment-5006380-20140925021555
I wrote the timeline, and I assure you I have read the novel many times. Because I was aiming to do a very concise timeline for a long and complex book, it's understandable that some of the continuity would be lost on those who have not read the book in its entirety. I will explain it further for you: *Stephen Bonnet escapes in June 1767, and is a ship captain in July 1769. That is what is in the book; Diana made that decision, not me. *September 1769: Brianna becomes handfast to Roger and they have sex; the next day, Brianna visits Stephen Bonnet to get her mother's ring back, and Bonnet rapes Brianna. Her resulting pregnancy, and reluctance to tell Jamie who raped her, contributes to the later confusion for all involved. *In the timeline: "Lizzie tells Jamie and Ian that a man named MacKenzie, who she believes '''assaulted Brianna in Wilmington, is making his way up the mountain" and "Jamie goes with Ian to meet 'MacKenzie' and they beat him to a pulp..." Okay. In the book, when Roger shows up in Wilmington, Brianna is shocked and seems, to Lizzie, to be very disturbed by his appearance. Later, after she has spent the night with Roger, Brianna returns to the room she shares with Lizzie at the inn and Lizzie notices Brianna is upset. After Brianna falls asleep, Lizzie picks up Brianna's clothes and notices they're covered in dirt and straw, smell like "the reek of a man," and there's a bloodstain in the crotch of Brianna's breeches. Lizzie makes the mistaken leap that the man (Roger) forced himself on Brianna. (He did not; after having consensual sex, Roger and Brianna have an argument, and that is why Brianna is upset when she returns to Lizzie.) Later, when Lizzie recognizes Roger, who introduces himself as "MacKenzie", Lizzie tells Ian and Jamie that the man who assaulted Brianna is coming up the mountain. Meanwhile, Brianna et al. are waiting for Roger '''Wakefield to make himself known, not Roger MacKenzie, and only Brianna and Claire know what Roger looks like. *In summary: Lizzie thinks Roger raped Brianna, but Lizzie doesn't know that man was Roger. Stephen Bonnet actually raped Brianna, but Brianna doesn't want Jamie to know that. Jamie and Ian realize that Brianna is pregnant, and after Lizzie tells them that the man who raped Brianna is on his way, they decide to go deal with him without telling Brianna or Claire. Brianna admits to Jamie that she was raped, but doesn't say by whom. When Brianna sketches Roger, and Jamie and Ian realize that the man "MacKenzie" was actually Roger Wakefield, Jamie demands to know why Brianna claimed to have been raped by the man she's been waiting for. Brianna finally confesses that Stephen Bonnet raped her, not Roger. Lizzie's mistaken impression, Roger's alias, and Brianna withholding the fact that Stephen Bonnet was involved, all contribute to the web of misunderstanding. The contributors to this wiki are volunteers, and at the moment there is only myself and another user making regular, substantial contributions. I would suggest that in the future you do not assume that just because the structure or wording of a page is unclear to you, the writer must be an "amateur" or hasn't read the books. Diana's books are not easily summarized, and this particular plot is no exception. That said, there is always room for improvement in any given article, and raising questions about an article's clarity is perfectly acceptable and encouraged, while doing so about the contributor's credentials is not. I will go back and see if I can clarify these points in the timeline.